Audio Messages:
Pastor Wade Burleson

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The Purpose Driven God
He Came to Dispel the Darkness

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John 12:46 (KJV)

46. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

Our text is the words of Christ Himself as He explains the purpose for His coming. "I am come (Gk. "I have come) a light into the world " (John 12:46). We see from these words:

1. There is a darkness in which people abide . . .
   "I am come a light, that whosever believeth on me should not abide in darkness" (John 12:46).
   Darkness (Gk. scotia (skot-ee-ah) is a word used in the New Testament in a metaphorical sense to represent ignorance of divine truth, man's sinful nature, and a lack of spiritual perception. It describes the life of one without a personal relationship with Christ.
   1. Spiritual darkness connotes judgment from God . . .
      A thick darkness was one of the judgments upon Egypt. Unbelievers are in it.
   2. Spiritual darkness causes a man to lose his way . . .
      "For he that walketh in Darkness, knoweth not whither he goeth" (John 12:35).
      Isaiah spoke of Israel by saying, "Behold trouble and Darkness" (Isaiah 8:22).
   3. Spiritual darkness can be measured by degrees . . .
      "One degree of darkness may attend the day; a day may be dark but not like the darkness of night; and some nights are darker than others" Benjamin Keach.
   4. Spiritual darkness carries a sense of dread near the light . . .
      Because the love of Christ is unnatural for the person who is in darkness, when he is around the Light he trembles at his inability to see the Light (Romans 8:15).
2. There is a deliverance that Christ does provide.
   "I am come a light," Jesus said. In the original, "I have come." Never fear, He is here. He came into the world to dispel the darkness in you (Read II Corinthians 4:3-7).
   1. God dispels the darkness in my soul through the light of Jesus Christ . . .
      "For God . . . hath shined in our hearts to give the light" (II Corinthians 4:6). This light is Jesus Christ Himself. If you love Christ this morning, thank God for grace.
   2. God deposits the treasure of the light in me that He might be glorified . . .
      "We have this treasure in earthen vessels" (II Corinthians 4:7). The word treasure is the Greek word "thesaurus" which means "a receptacle of valuables." It is the same word used of the "treasures" of the Magi - gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Men give to God what they treasure; God gives to man what He treasures WB.
   3. God decrees affliction that His light might shine a little brighter . . .
      "We have this treasure in earthen vessels" (II Corinthians 4:7). Literally jars of clay. Don't waste your sorrows. Don't let your spirit be burdened because of loss. Experiences that bring a breaking in your life are designed for Christ to shine.
3. There is a duty from which we cannot hide.
   For those of us who have experienced the grace of God and have Christ within us: "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret" (Ephesians 5:8-12). May we remember on this Christmas Day that He came a Light; to shine through us!